| | Consumerism and Planned Obsolescence Describe consumerism. Describe a specific context and explain what consumerism means in the setting. While doing my research on this topic I came to an understanding that Consumerism as many meaning when used in certain context. One of those contexts provided by Merriam-Webster dictionary is “the theory that an increasing consumption of goods is economically desirable” So the more we spend the better the economy grow. In some way this is true, that was one of the reasons why President Obama gave out Stimulus checks in 2009 in hope people will spend them to help build by the economy. What is planned obsolescence? - is an approach to the conception, design and production of a product, such as hardware or software, involving the intent that it should be useful, functional or popular for only a limited length of time. What role does planned obsolescence play in consumerism? Obsolescence plays a vital role in consumerism, because it provides the need to better and more functioning products, which consumers will buy known that the product that they current own is adequate but it will have less function as the new and updated version. An also appealing to the buy who are into trends and want to feel superior to others that still have the older version. Describe one product or service and explain how planned obsolescence is incorporated into its design. Electronics is the best example of how Obsolescence thrive on Consumerism. Also, every year a new or better product is produce that will out do its previous editions, due to the demands form customers reviews. Before Smart TVs there was Desk-top computers, you could watch DVDs/ Blue-rays DVD, and listen CDs. Now that there are smart TVs with access to the internet, you have a much bigger display screen, you can browse and listen to music from the various apps while sharing the experiences with other in a much wider setting What are your personal beliefs and biases about consumption? My take on consumption is knowing my limits, just because the new craze is the Samsung S8, doesn’t mean I need to put myself in more debit to purchase a $720 phone. There are too many waste full people in our society, a good example of this too falls in an ethical background of the person, they might be a Relativism (they grow up in an area where who had the newest Jordan’s, Marc Jacob Watch, Michael Kors fashion trend, et al.) Having separated your personal beliefs and biases, use ethical theories and concepts to present how you feel about consumerism and planned obsolescence as societal issues. Consumerism fit all the key ethical theories depending on who or what the situation is. utilitarianism: the act we should choose is that which produces the best results for the greatest number affected by that choice. “Organized-efforts by individuals, groups, and governments to help protect consumers from policies and practices that infringe consumer rights to fair business practices.” deontology: It is particularly important to see that the deontologist does not say that actions do not have consequences; rather, the deontologist insists that actions should not be evaluated on the basis of the action's consequences. Regarding healthcare “Consumers are now demanding more choices and better service, and home care providers need to be able to deliver. In the early days of home care, consumerism was inherently built into treatment; nurses came in and helped the client however he or she needed.” (Dodd, 2005)
Virtue ethics emphasizes the moral, or virtuous, person who exemplifies moral behavior. President Bush and Obama, when they implemented the Stimulus checks. Planned obsolescence more falls in the realm of Ethical Egoism where the manufacture “is maximizes their utility” when they with-out updated products till they now they can make a profit References Dodd, K. (2005, April). Consumerism. Home Health Care Management & Practice, 17(3), 225-226. doi:10.1177/1084822304271822 http://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/stimulus-check.asp http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/consumerism http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/consumerism.html https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/consumerism http://www.samsung.com/global/galaxy/galaxy-s8/ https://www.thebalance.com/stimulus-checks-3305750 Mosser, K. (2013). Ethics and social responsibility(2nd ed.) [Electronic version]. Retrieved from https://content.ashford.edu/
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